Search

This paper describes 35 patients whose artefactual illness gained them admittance to hospital. The 15 wanderers were more likely than the 20 non-wanderers to have been in more than 10 hospitals, possessed histories exceeding 10 years, presented with abdominal or psychiatric complaints, volunteered poor work records and displayed psychopathic traits. The non-wanderers were more likely than the wanderers to possess socially conformist personalities. Twenty-six patients had severe sexual/marital problems. Neither group attended well for psychiatric follow up appointments.

An unusual case of Munchausen's Syndrome is presented, in which the patient feigned a psychiatric history, complained of emotional symptoms and sought admission to a psychiatric unit. This variant of the usual somatic presentation is discussed in terms of the problem of motivation in Munchausen's Syndrome. Munchausen's Syndrome is a behavioral complex in which patients feign history and symptoms of illness and seek hospital admissions. Such an unusual pattern of behavior is clearly within the province of psychiatry, yet these patients, presenting most commonly with somatic symptoms, are often reluctant to see a psychiatrist and flee before being interviewed. Of 38 cases in one series, only 16 had a psychiatric consultation. The purpose of this paper is to describe an unusual case of Munchausen's Syndrome, a patient who, rather than fleeing from psychiatrists, sought admission to psychiatric units. While the genetic material available in this case is sparse, the phenomenon itself of psychiatric complaints and history in such a patient may further our understanding of, and spur futher interest in, a perplexing disorder.

A case report of a 37-year-old woman with Munchausen syndrome which differs in many respects from the classical picture is described. Attempts are made to examine the motives behind the syndrome and to make a link with the common pattern of deliberate self-harm.

It is reported on a female patient with Münchhausen syndrome who was referred by the family doctor for the clarification of a haematuria. As cause of the haematuria two stones of about 1 cm in diameter each were found which were artificially brought into the bladder.

Patients with Munchausen's syndrome often undergo multiple surgical operations under general anaesthesia. They tend to have multiple exposures to routinely used anaesthetic agents. A patient with Munchausen's syndrome who developed an anaphylactoid reaction to thiopentone is described and the importance of obtaining previous case notes is stressed.

A case of chronic factitious illness in a methadone maintenance patient is presented. We believe that this is the first published report of chemical dependence as a presenting complaint in a Munchausen syndrome case.

The authors report a case of Ferjol's asthenia (hypochromic anaemia due to deliberately induced bleeding) occurring in the post-partum period in a young primiparous woman. After describing their hesitations about the diagnosis, they briefly review this curious syndrome.

A man with Munchausen's syndrome was treated for drug dependence, which allowed him to establish and sustain a bond with a hospital, but eventually brought about an ethical dilemma.